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There’s something about reading, with its need for stillness and contemplation, that naturally lends itself to summer. But that doesn’t mean that what you read has to be as flimsy as a pair of flip-flops. Star book reviewers Emily Donaldson and Alex Good share their picks for the best of summer reading, with tomes from celebrated authors and bright young things alike, fiction and non-fiction, and tales that draw inspiration from sources as varied as history, love and the supernatural.

Marc Schlosser, a narcissistic doctor with an aversion to the human body, is accused of a “medical error” that caused the death of an actor friend whose wife he just happened to be having an affair with. The Dutch writer’s most recent novel shares the vituperative sensibility of its predecessor, The Dinner; pull up a deck chair and bask in the schadenfreude. ED

Eyrie by Tim Winton, HarperCollins, June

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In his latest book, Winton (officially declared a “national treasure” in his native Australia) abandons the sprawling Western Australian landscape of novels like Dirt Music for a suffocating poured-concrete highrise where his unemployed, self-medicating protagonist gets mixed up with an assortment of troubled characters. What hasn’t changed is Winton’s dark lyricism, his grappling with the meaning of family. ED

Tigerman by Nick Harkaway, Knopf, July

In his two previous novels British author Harkaway has shown a sure hand with entertaining, genre-twisting plots. Tigerman has him back with another off-beat adventure, this time dealing with a burnout case named Lester Ferris who has been sent to an ex-colonial backwater slated for termination. Unfortunately for Lester’s retirement plans, the island of Mancreu also turns out to be an international hot spot hosting drugs, spies, hot money, arms dealers and torture centres. It will take a superhero to sort this out. Enter the Tigerman. AG

Land of Love and Drowning by Tiphanie Yanique, Riverhead, July

Set in her native U.S. Virgin Islands, the Brooklyn-based author’s debut novel and followup to her well-received collection How to Escape From a Leper Colony is an epic, multi-generational tale that interlaces the island’s history and folklore with the seminal events of the 20th century. Considered by many as a writer to watch, Yanique’s prose has been called “gorgeous” and “entrancing.” ED

Last Stories and Other Stories by William T. Vollmann, Viking, July

Trust Vollmann to make things complicated. In his first work of fiction since his National Book Award-winning Europe Central in 2005, the celebrated alternative American literary star offers up a stocky collection of stories dealing with ghosts and the supernatural. Responses will no doubt be mixed, as Vollmann is a polarizing, deceptively difficult author. Fans, however, will want to take note. AG

Ten Cities That Made an Empire by Tristram Hunt, Henry Holt, August

In these 10 portraits of pivotal, colonial-era cities including Boston, Cape Town, Liverpool and Hong Kong, historian Hunt tries to move past a “barren conversation about empire being a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ thing” to show us why urbanism is its most enduring legacy. Enlightening and original, Hunt’s book is particularly relevant in the context of rapid, intensive urbanization taking place worldwide. ED

Ellen in Pieces by Caroline Adderson, Patrick Crean Books, August

Adderson is one of those authors who should be getting more attention and this summer will be a good time to start getting acquainted with her. Ellen in Pieces, Adderson’s first adult novel since 2010’s The Sky Is Falling, offers multiple perspectives on the “loves, lusts and losses” attendant on a single mother’s entry into middle age. AG

Sweetland by Michael Crummey, Doubleday, August

A lot of the fiction coming out of Newfoundland addresses the fundamental dilemma of “should I stay or should I go?” In Sweetland, that question takes centre stage as Moses Sweetland fakes his own death so he can be left behind when his small island community is relocated. Crummey’s last novel, Galore, was one of the best books of 2010 and it will be interesting to see how he follows it up as he returns to mythic ground. AG

Cloud by Eric McCormack, Penguin, August

He’s been called a “virtuoso” and “master stylist” abroad, yet the Scottish-Canadian writer, whose books have embraced gothic and absurdist elements, hasn’t always gotten the attention he deserves here at home. His first novel in more than a decade is about a businessman whose serendipitous discovery of a musty old tome in a Mexican bookstore prompts him to seek out the ghosts of his Scottish past. ED

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami, Bond Street Books, August

Global phenom Murakami enjoys a massive cult following, his books provoking Harry Potter-like feeding frenzies in stores despite the fact that the last few have been major disappointments. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki, however, is being touted as a return to earlier form, featuring a more grounded adult love story. If Murakami can get back on top of his game this will be one of the can’t-miss books of the summer. AG

Emily Donaldson and Alex Good are regular contributors to the Star’s book pages.

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